The One Cocktail Science Says Tastes Better on a Flight

""Our study confirmed that in an environment of loud noise, our sense of taste is compromised. Interestingly, this was specific to sweet and umami tastes, with sweet taste inhibited and umami taste significantly enhanced,""

""The multisensory properties of the environment where we consume our food can alter our perception of the foods we eat.""

Forty-eight participants sampled tomato juices with varied sweet, salty, and bitter profiles while ambient noise levels were increased. Increasing noise made sweetness harder to detect, while savory (umami) flavors remained detectable and were perceived as enhanced. Cabin conditions of low pressure and dryness reduce sensitivity to sweet and salty tastes by roughly 30 percent. The combined effects of ambient noise, pressure, and humidity change taste perception in flight. Umami-rich foods and drinks therefore register more strongly at altitude, making tomato-based cocktails like Bloody Marys taste better during air travel.

Read at Travel + Leisure